Burner



y 1934- R. M. SHERMAN ET AL BURNER Original Filed Aug. 4, 1930 2Sheets-Sheet 1 y 29, 1934- R. M. SHERMAN ET AL 1,961,086

BURNE R Original Filed Aug. 4, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.4

Gnssous SuppLv GAS ON GAS on GAS OFF GAS OFF on. OFF OILON on. ON on.OFF

Iawenfinag: 13022052222221. Sberazaan, Frederico? E'Nm Patented May 29,1934 UNITED )STATES PATENT OFFICE BURNER Original application August 4,1930, Serial No.

473,022. Divided and this application February 6, 1934, Serial No.709,954

Claims.

This invention relates to burners and more par ticularly though notexclusively to what are commonly termed combustion tube burners. Thelatter are usually provided with one or more com- )ustion chambershaving perforated tubular walls through which a r enters to mix withfuel vapor ascending from a fuel space at the bottom of the chamber, them'xture being burned in the combustion chamber and a blue flame issuingfrom the upper open end thereof. Such burners are commonly employed inconnection with a single fuel-supply source such as oil or other liquidfuel which is supplied to or has connection with a fuel groove or troughimmediately beneath the combustion chamber.

This application is a division of application, Serial No. 473,022, filedAugust 4, 1930.

The objects of the invention among other things are to improve theconstruction of burners of this type, increase their utility by makingthem adaptable to a wider range of service and to decrease the startinginterval or period required for pre-heat'ng when employed with liquidfuel.

These and other objects of the invention will be best understood byreference to the following description when taken in connection with theaccompanying illustration showing one specific embodiment thereof, whileits scope will be more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the burner is soconstructed that it will operate with complete effectiveness for eitherlong or short intervals from a supply of either liquid fuel or gaseousfuel, and the connections are such that either liqu'd or gaseous fuelmay be supplied at will so that the burner may be operated exclusivelyfrom a source of liquid fuel supply or from a source of gaseous fuelsupply, or its operation at one time when supplied with gaseous fuel maybe followed without interruption by its operation with liquid fuel, orvice versa.

The ordinary combustion tube burner, whensupplied solely with liquidfuel, has certain disadvantages which limit its field of usefulness.

In starting a burner of this type from a cold condition it is necessaryto pre-heat the burner walls before finally turning on the fullcontinuing supply of the liquid fuel so that some vaporization of thefuel will take place when it reaches the fuel space and the rising vaporignites with the incoming air in the combust'on chamber.

One common method of pre-heating is to provide the fuel groove with anasbestos or other wick, which is first saturated with oil or otherpriming fluid and then lighted by a taper. After an interval ofpre-heating suflicient to cause a vaporfzation of a portion of theliquid fuel reaching the fuel groove, the supply is then turned on. Asthe temperature rises, the walls of the groove and adjacent passagesbecome more highly heated and an increasingly greater proportion of thefuel reaches the groove in vaporized form and finally, after the lapseof a substantial interval, the fuel reaching the fuel space or spaces iscompletely vaporized and an intensely hot blue flame results.

The prolonged interval required for the preheating before the burner canbe brought to its full heating capacity, which may be termed thestarting interval, is a serious drawback to the more general use of thistype of burner. Due also to the fact that the oil or other fuel isdelivered in liquid form and must be vaporized by the heated surroundingwalls of the burner before it can be ignited in the combustion chamber,the heating effect of a burner of given size is limited and, while itmay be ample for ordinary purposes, if an especial occasion arisescalling for a more intense heat, the burner cannot be forced beyond agiven point by merely increasing the rate with which liquid fuel issupplied.

In the described embodiment of the invention, if it is desired tooperate the burner with liquid fuel, the starting interval may be cutdown to a relatively short period by first turning. onand igniting thegas from the source of gas supply which will immediately develop thefull heating capacity of the burner and will quickly raise thetemperature of the burner walls to a point sufficient to fully vaporizethe oil. Accordingly, the latter, without the long delay heretoforenecessary, may be quickly turned on and the gas shut off, almostimmediately reaching the full oil-heating capacity of the burner underthe supply of liquid fuel, thereby eliminating in large measure thedisadvantage due to a prolonged starting interval.

On the other hand, where it is desired usually to operate the burnerunder liquid fuel but at times tooperate it under conditions of moreintense heat than could be obtained by liquid fuel, the latter may beshut off and the gas turned on to force the burner beyond its liquidfuelheating capacity and to give whatever degree of flame may be called for.

The construction of the burner which qualifies it to burn either type offuel adapts it to a wide range of conditions. If gas is readilyavailable and relatively economical it may be employed primarily withgas, and liquid fuel may be drawn from a source of liquid fuel supplyonly on those occasions when, as often happens, the gas supply may failor be inadequate. If, as is usually the case, liquid fuel is moreeconomical than gas, the burner may be primarily operated from thesource of liquid fuel and operated with gas only for pre-heating or whenthe liquid fuel supply is depleted or not available, or when a specialoccasion arises for forcing the burner beyond a heating capacity whichis obtainable from the liquid fuel. On the other hand, the burner may beoperated at will exclusively by liquid fuel or exclusively with gas, ascircumstances may demand.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a burner embodying one form of the invention,the cover plates for the air spaces or chambers being partly broken awayto better show the construction of the base member;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional elevation on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view comprising a sectional elevation on theline 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is an elevation of a burner similar to that illustrated in Fig.2, showing its connection to the sources of liquid and gaseous fuelsupply and the controlling valve therefor;

Figs. 5 and 5a show sectional plans on the lines AA and BB in Fig. 4respectively representing the position of the valve when gas is suppliedto the burner with the oil supply cut off Figs. 6 and 6a show similarsections with the valve in the position of supplying both liquid fueland gaseous fuel;

Figs. 7 and 7a show similar sections with the valve in the position inwhich liquid fuel is supplied to the burner with the gas supply cut off;and

Figs. 8 and 8a show similar sections with the valve in the position inwhich both gas and liquid fuel are shut off from the burner.

Referring to the drawings (Figs. 1, 2 and 3) and to the embodiment ofthe invention which is submitted for illustrative purposes, the burneris provided with a base member 1 having an outer annular plate 3 and aninner annular concentric plate 5, connected one to the other by a seriesof webs '7, herein four in number, and providing for an annular airadmission space 9 between the plates.

The inner plate 5 is provided with a central air admission opening 11surrounded by an upturned ring-like flange 13, the outer edge of theinner plate 5 having also an upturned ring-like flange 15 spaced frombut concentric with the flange 13. The flanges 13 and 15, together withthe bottom plate 5, form a relatively wide annular compartment orchannel, on the bottom of which there is provided a raised annular lip17 separating the compartment into an outer fuel space defined by thegroove 19 and an inner vaporizing space 21, to which latter liquid fuel,such as oil, may be delivered by the pipe connection 21 through theopening 23 in the bottom of the plate. The annular lip 17 constitutes abafile which normally prevents the direct flow of the fuel in liquidform from the opening 23 to the fuel groove 19, the travel thereto ofthe vaporized liquid fuel taking place, however, without hindrance overthe top of the raised lip. The bottom of the vaporizing space within theannular lip constitutes a flow plate over which any liquid fuel enteringthe burner must flow, and by which, when the burner is heated, it isreadily vaporized.

The outer annular plate 3 is also constructed to present an outer fuelgroove 25 formed between upright spaced annular flanges 27 and 29 onsaid plate. Connected to one of the fuel grooves or spaces, and hereinthrough the outside flange 27 to the outer fuel groove 25, is a pipeconnection 31 for supplying gaseous fuel to the burner. The outer fuelgroove 25 is connected to the inner fuel groove 19 by means of supplyducts 33 (Fig. 3) formed in the webs 7, so that free circulation takesplace throughout both fuel grooves of either vaporized liquid fuelsupplied through the pipe 21 or gaseous fuel supplied through the pipe31.

The top of the vaporizing chamber is closed except for the direct escapeof vaporized fuel to the fuel space 19 by a removable annular coverplate 35, the under side of which is grooved to seat on the upper edgeof the flange 13 with a preferably close fit. The walls of the coverplate extend outwardly, and herein also downwardly, over the vaporizingcompartment and the annular lip, but are spaced vertically from thelatter to provide an annular passage from the vaporizing compartment tothe fuel space, so that any vaporized fuel may pass directly over thelip between the latter and the cover plate and into the fuel space 19.

Above the lip 17 the cover plate is provided with an upturned flange 37,within which there is supported a perforated sheet metal cylinder 39. Asimilar but larger concentric cylinder 41 is removably seated on theouter shouldered edge of the flange 15 so that there is provided betweenthe two cylinders the elongated combustion chamber 43 aligned with andconstituting an extension of the underlying fuel space 19. Concentric,

spaced, perforated sheet metal cylinders 45 and 47 are likewiseremovably seated on the shouldered edges of the flanges 27 and 29respectively, providing between them the combustion chamber 49 bearing arelation to the outer fuel space 25 similar to that of the combustionchamber 43 to '3' the fuel space 19. It will be understood that theperforations in the sheet metal cylinders are distributed throughoutsubstantially the entire surface thereof, a small perforated area onlybeing shown in Fig. 2. these perforations may be of any shape, size orarrangement to provide suitable air admission openings for thecombustion chambers.

A removable cover plate 51 is provided with its edges resting upon thetops of the sheet metal cylinders 41 and 47 to close the top of theannular air space therebetween, and a disc-shaped closure plate 53 withits edges resting on the upper edges of the cylinder 39 is similarlyprovided to close the top of the central air chamber, leaving, however,annular openings in the tops of the two combustion chambers 43 and 49for the escape of the products of combustion. The closure plates 51 and53, if desired, may be provided with one or more apertures to permit thepartial escape of air therethrough.

To render the burner effective for either liquid or gaseous fuel, thebottom of the combustion chamber 43 is separated from the top of thefuel space by a wall or partition in the form of a plate 1 55, and thecombustion chamber 49 from the fuel space 25 by a plate 57, the plate 55being provided with a series of restricted orifices 59 or theirequivalent, and the plate 57 with a series of orifices 61. The size,number and arrangement of these It will also be understood that orificesmay be varied but is preferably such that, while permitting the passagefrom the fuel space to the combustion chamber of either the gaseous fuelor of vaporized liquid fuel, the burning thereof is confined to thecombustion space, and the flow of the gas or vapor is sufficientlyrestricted to cause a substantially even distribution thereof as itcirculates-throughout the fuel spaces and a substantially uniformcombustion throughout both combustion chambers, whether supplied withgas through the pipe 31 or with liquid fuel through the pipe 21'.

The plate 55 is annular in shape and may be conveniently providedthrough a flanged extension of the cover plate 35, the outer edge ofwhich is shouldered to fit closely to the inner walls of the uprightflange 15, so as to prevent the passage of gas to the combustion chamberfrom the fuel space except through the orifices 59. The plate 57 issimilarly annular in form, with its edges shouldered to fit upon theflanges 27 and 29 to close the combustion chamber 49 to the fuel space25 except through the orifices 61.

Referring to Fig. 4, the pipe connection 21' communicates with the pipeline 63 which is connected through the casing of the control valve 65 toa source of liquid fuel supply, which for descriptive purposes will bereferred to as oil. The source of oil supply may comprise an elevatedtank or the like combined with any of the feeding devices customarilyemployed with burners of this type and which provide for the flow of theoil to the burner from some definite height or level, capable of beingaccurately regulated, so that the flow of the fuel may be maintained ata predetermined level over the flow plate or bottom of the vaporizingspace 21 in the burner. Such tanks and regulating devices are of commonconstruction and are not herein shown.

The pipe connection 31 communicates with the pipe line 67 which isconnected through the control valve 65 with a source of gaseous fuelsupply, which may be the ordinary service main, or a gascontainingstorage tank where the gas is maintained under pressure, or any othersuitable source.

The valve 6.5 is arranged so that the burner may be connected at willwith either source of fuel supply. Any suitable type of valve may beemployed for that purpose, but herein (Figs. 4 to 8) it comprises arotatable, tapered stem or body 69 seated in the casing 65 and providedwith a handle 71. The stem is provided with a transverse gas port orpassage '73 adapted in one position (Fig. 5) of the valve to align withand connect two opposite ports '75 in the casing, which are connected tothe two branches of the gas line 67, between which the valve isinterposed.

The valve stem is also provided with a similar transverse port orpassage '77 for the oil, the latter port being vertically spaced fromthe port 73 and adapted in one position (Fig. 7a) to align with andconnect two opposite ports '79 in the casing, which are connected to thetwo branches of the oil line 63, between which the valve is interposed.The two ports '13 and '77 intersect the axis of the valve stem atdifferent angles so that in the fully open position of the gas line, asshown in Figs. 5 and 5a, the oil is cut off, and in the fully openposition of the oil line (Figs. 7 and 7a) the gas is cut off. The valvemay be further moved to the closed position shown in Figs. 8 and 8a,where both gas and oil are cut off from the burner.

Preferably the ports and passages are so related that in cutting off thegas from the burner and opening the oil supply thereto, as in passingfrom the position shown in Figs. 5 and 5a to that shown in Figs. '7 andid, or in cutting off the oil and opening the gas supply, as in passingfrom the position shown in Figs. '7 and 7a to that shown in Figs. 5 and5a, an intermediate position (Figs. 6 and 6a) is passed through in whichboth gas and oil are temporarily supplied. This insures the persistenceof the combustion in the burner during the time that change is beingmade from one type of fuel to the other so that the operation of theburner may proceed without interruption. It further facilitates theaction of starting the burner with oil after pre-heating with gas, sincethe continuing pressure in the gas supply as the oil is turned onchecksthe too sudden delivery of oil to the vaporizing space,- allowingit to flow more gradually over the bottom plate thereof and insuring itsinstant vaporization by the pre-heated walls.

The operation of the burner will be evident from the foregoingdescription. A common use for such a burner is to place it, whenproperly supported, in the fire pot of a kitchen range or the like, twoburner units usually being combined in a single structure, of which oneunit only is shown in Fig. 4. To operate the burner by oil, the gas isfirst turned on either partially or fully by moving the valve towards orto the position shown'in Fig. 5. The gas enters the fuel space 25 andcirculates through and fills that space as well as the fuel space 19.The gas issuing from the orifices 59 and 61 is then ignited by a taperor the like inserted through the top of the combustion chamber. tionchamber from the fuel space unmixedwith air and combustion is confinedto the spaces 43 and 49, which receive a completely adequate supply ofair through the perforated cylinder walls. The gas burns with anoiseless flame in the combustion chamber and immediately develops itsfull heating intensity, providing a hot blue flame, quickly raising thetemperature of the burner parts to a point where the oil may be turnedon with assurance of its being vaporized as soon as it enters thevaporizing space 21. As the valve is first turned to admit the oil, thegas continues to be supplied and the combustion maintained, the oilbeing delivered to the vaporizing space at first slowly, so that the oilfirst entering and traveling over the flow plate is completelyvaporized, the resultant oil vapor arising in the combustion spacethrough the orifices 59 and 61, to replace the diminishing supply ofgas. When the valve is completely turned to the position shown in Figs.7 and 7a, the gas is completely out off and the burner works exclusivelyunder the supply of oil.

If, during operation of the burner under oil, it is desired to force theburner beyond its oilheating capacity, the valve may be turned back toits gas supplying position shown in Figs. 5 and 5a, and if turned to itsfull position will produce a flame of greater volume and heatingintensity than can be had from the oil supply. Similarly, shouldany-occasion arise for the switching from one type of fuel to the other,either because of the depletion or failure of the oil supply or thetemporary or other failure of the necessary pressure in the gas main orother source, or for any other reason, such switch or change may be immediately made withoutalteration in the burner itself.

It will be observed that the gas supply pipe en- The gas enters thecombusters the burner above the bottom of the outer fuel groove so that,if during the starting of the burner liquid fuel is admitted to thevaporizing space and allowed to pass over the lip 17, liquid fuel mayenter both fuel grooves and a shallow body of liquid fuel may gather inthe bottom of saidgrooves and be retained therein until vaporizedwithout intereference with the free, concurrent admission of gaseousfuel to the fuel grooves and the combustion chambers from said fuelsupply pipe.

The claims herein presented relate to a burner having provision for asupply of liquid fuel and a supply of gaseous fuel. Features relating tothe construction of the burner per se, apart from the nature of the fuelsupply, are claimed in our application, Serial No. 473,022, of whichthis is a division.

While we have herein described for purposes of illustration one specificembodiment of the invention and one particular application thereof, itis to be understood that extensive deviations from and changes in theillustrated form may be made and applications thereof other than here--in illustrated may be utilized, all without departing from the spirit ofthe invention.

While the oil supply is herein shown as delivered to the inner fuelgroove and the gas supply to the outer fuel groove, our invention as tothe delivery of the liquid fuel and the gas contemplates the delivery ofthe two fuels at any point, or points, which may be suited to theconstruction of the particular burner to which the invention is applied.

We claim:

1. With a combustion tube burner having a base including a fuel grooveand surmounted by a pair of perforated combustion tubes forming betweenthem a combustion chamber communicating with said fuel groove, thecombination of a source of gaseous fuel supply, a source of liquid fuelsupply, and means including a common controlling valve for connectingsaid burner with either source of supply to the exclusion of the other,said valve in changing from one source of supply to the other providingfor a continuance of the established supply from one source until thesupply from the other source has been established, and said meansconnecting the source of liquid fuel supply to the burner by way of thefuel groove of its base.

2. With a combustion tube burner having a base including a fuel grooveand surmounted by a pair of perforated combustion tubes forming betweenthem a combustion chamber, the combination of a source of liquid fuelsupply, a source of gaseous fuel supply, and connections includingcoordinately related valve means for controlling said sources to connectthe burner for delivery thereto of either gaseous or liquid fuel to theexclusion of the other, said means, in changing from one source ofsupply to another, providing for a continuance of the established supplyfrom one source until the supply from the other source has beenestablished, and said means connecting the source of liquid fuel supplyto the burner by way of the fuel groove of its base.

3. With a combustion tube burner having spaced perforated wallspresenting between them a combustion chamber, a base having an endlessvapor distributing chamber beneath and opening into said combustionchamber and a vaporizing chamber communicating with said vapordistributing chamber, the combination of a source of liquid fuel supply,a source of gaseous fuel supply, connections for delivering liquid fuelfrom said liquid fuel source to the vaporizing chamber, connections fordelivering gaseous fuel from said gaseous fuel source to be burned insaid combustion chamber, and coordinately related valve means forcontrolling said sources to connect the burner for delivery thereto ofeither gaseous or liquid fuel to the exclusion of the other, said means,in changing from one source of supply to the other, providing for acontinuance of the established supply from one source until the supplyfrom the other source has been established.

4. A combustion tube burner having inner and outer, spaced, perforated,combustion tubes presenting between them a combustion chamber, a basehaving an endless vapor-distributing space beneath and opening into saidcombustion chamber, said base having also an inner vaporizing space andan open communicating passage connecting the same with saidvapor-distributing space, said base being provided with a removablecovering wall covering said vaporizing space and said passage whereby,when said cover is removed, the fuel spaces comprising the vaporizingspace, fuel distributing space and all connecting passages are open andexposed, a source of liquid fuel supply, a source of gaseous fuelsupply, means for delivering liquid fuel from said liquid fuel supply tothe vaporizing space, means for delivering gaseous fuel from saidgaseous fuel supply to be burned in the combustion chamber independentlyof said vaporizing space, and said base having means between the fueldelivery and the fuel-distributing space impeding the flow of liquidthereto while permitting the direct passage of vaporized fuel thereto.

5. With a combustion tube burner having a pair of perforate combustiontubes forming between them a combustion chamber and a base member havinga fuel receiving space beneath the combustion chamber, the combinationof a source of liquid fuel supply, a source of gaseous fuel supply, andconnections including coordinately related valve means for controllingsaid sources to connect the burner for delivery thereto of eithergaseous or liquid fuel to the exclusion of the other, said means, inchanging from either source of supply to the other, providing for acontinuance of the established supply from one source until the supplyfrom the other source has been established.

6. With a combustion tube burner having a pair of perforate combustiontubes forming between them a combustion chamber and a base member havinga fuel receiving space beneath the combustion chamber, the combinationof a source of liquid fuel supply, a source of gaseous fuel supply, andconnections including coordinately related valve means for controllingsaid sources to connect the burner for delivery thereto of eithergaseous or liquid fuel to the exclusion of the other, said means, inchanging from either source of supply to the other, providing for acontinuance of the established supply from one source until the supplyfrom the other source has been established and said means furtherproviding for variations from no delivery to full delivery of gaseousfuel alone, and for variation from full delivery to no delivery ofliquid fuel alone.

7. A combustion tube burner having inner and outer, spaced, perforatedcombustion tubes presenting between them a combustion chamber, a basehaving an endless vapor distributing space beneath and opening into saidcombustion chamber, said base having also a vaporizing chamber and anopen communicating passage connecting said chamber and opening intosaid'vapor distributing space,said base being provided with a removablecovering wall covering said vaporizing chamber and said passage, wherebywhen said cover is removed the fuel spaces, comprising the vaporizingchamber, fuel distributing space and said connecting passage, are openand exposed, a source of liquid fuel supply, a source of gaseous fuelsupply, means for delivering liquid fuel from said liquid fuel supply tothe vaporizing space, and means for delivering gaseous fuel from saidgaseous fuel supply to be burned in the combustion chamber independentlyof said vaporizing space.

8. A burner of the class described comprising a pair of perforated,tubular members forming between them a combustion chamber, a base memberhaving upstanding Walls and having an endless vapor distributing chamberbeneath and communicating with the combustion chamber and having avaporizing chamber to which the liquid fuel supply is delivered, saidvaporizing chamber communicating with the vapor distribuuting chamberpermitting the direct flow of vaporized fuel to the latter, said basehaving means for impeding the flow of liquid fuel from the vaporizingchamber to the vapor distributing chamber comprising a wall raised abovethe bottom of the vaporizing chamber and extending entirely around saidvaporizing chamber, the top of said wall being at a lesser heightvertically than the walls of said base forming the vapor distributingchambena source of liquid fuel supply, a source of gaseous fuel supply,means for supplying liquid fuel to the vaporizing chamber, and means forsupplying gaseous fuel to be burned in said combustion chamber.

9. A combustion tube burner having a pair of perforated, concentric,vertically arranged, combustion tubes forming between them a combustionchamber, a base having spaced, upstanding walls and a bottom wallforming an endless fuel groove beneath and communicating with thecombustion chamber, said base having a vapor izing chamber provided witha lateral passage communicating with said fuel groove, a removable coverplate for said vaporizing chamber, a source of liquid fuel supply, asource of gaseous fuel supply, means for supplying liquid fuel to saidcovered vaporizing chamber, and gas supply means for delivering gaseousfuel from said source of gaseous fuel supply to said fuel groovecomprising a gas supply conduit having a delivery orifice above thebottom wall of said fuel groove.

10. A combustion tube burner having a pair of perforated, concentric,vertically arranged, combustion tubes forming between them a combustionchamber, a base having spaced, upstanding walls and a bottom wallforming an endless fuel groove beneath and communicating with thecombustion chamber, a source of liquid fuel supply, a source of gaseousfuel supply, means for supplying liquid fuel from said liquid fuelsupply source to the base and said fuel groove to be vaporized andburned in said combustion chamber, and means for delivering gaseous fuelfrom said source of gaseous fuel supply to said fuel groove having a gassupply orifice above the bottom wall thereof also to be burned in saidcombustion chamber.

RALLSTON M. SHERMAN. FREDERICK F. NEUMANN.

